Ministry of Justice: Expanding range of holders of accounts for payments concerning incorporation

Apr 17, 2017

A document confirming payment of contribution (payment certificate) must be attached at the time of registering for incorporation. A copy of the deposit passbook (of either a Japanese bank or a Japanese branch of a foreign bank) is also required. Although the holder of a bank account used to be limited to the incorporator or representative director of the company, it has been pointed out that those living in a foreign country, without a Japanese address, have difficulties in opening bank accounts in Japan. In such cases, it is often either impossible or takes much time to pay one's contribution.

In this regard, the MOJ issued a notification on March 17, 2017 that it has enlarged the range of possible holders of accounts to include the incorporator or representative director at the time of foundation. The range extends beyond the incorporator or the representative director for those living overseas. This is also applied to corporations.